When the HostingCon 2010 conference kicks off July 19 in Austin, Texas, we expect to see a convergence of managed services providers (MSPs) and hosting providers. And yes, plenty of news will surface HostingCon as well. One prime example: BackupAgent is set to launch new release of their flagship product, including integration with Kaseya. Here are the details.
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BackupAgent to Launch Online Storage Update at HostingCon
Posted July 8th, 2010 by Matthew Weinberger
Seven Managed Services Blogs MSPmentor Didn’t Write: June 25
Posted June 25th, 2010 by Joe Panettieri
I’m not sure how, when or why it happened. But this weekly “Seven things…” blog entry has developed a cult following of sorts. My inbox is filled each Friday morning with rumors, gossip and, um… music picks (thanks Gerard…) from readers. And each Friday afternoon, we publish seven pieces of reader chatter that MSPmentor’s blog team otherwise didn’t have a chance to cover. Here’s the rundown for the week ending June 25, 2010.
Spiceworks “Reach”-es for the Cloud
Posted June 24th, 2010 by Matthew Weinberger
Spiceworks, the free, advertising-driven, managed services platform, has launched the “Reach” partner program, designed to give solutions providers the hooks they need to administrate cloud services directly through their software. Here’s the scoop.
Rackspace Updates Hybrid Messaging With Enhanced Calendar
Posted June 16th, 2010 by Matthew Weinberger
Hosted services provider Rackspace Hosting is updating its Hybrid Email solution, a self-described “custom mix of Hosted Microsoft Exchange and the business-focused Rackspace Email platform on a single domain. The goal is to enhance the calendar view across the two component parts. The update also strives to speed up the Rackspace webmail client. Here’s the scoop.
Spiceworks: Serving 1 Million IT Pros?
Posted June 3rd, 2010 by Dave Courbanou
More than 1 million IT professionals and managed services providers now leverage Spiceworks, a free advertising-driven remote management platform, according to the latest company news release. But instead of promoting “Managed IT,” Spiceworks is taking up “Social IT.” Here’s why.
Alert Logic Names Cloud Security Channel Chief
Posted May 12th, 2010 by Matthew Weinberger
Earlier this year, MSPmentor’s John Moore laid out cloud security vendor Alert Logic’s value proposition for MSPs. Now, Alert Logic has promoted Randy Rosenbaum (pictured) from product marketing manager to the channel chief post. Here are details.
Government Examines Cloud Privacy
Posted May 10th, 2010 by John Moore
The government has never been far from the Internet, which has its origins in the Advanced Research Projects Agency. The explosion of the Web in the 1990s and growth of electronic commerce brought another form of government involvement. Congress passed the Internet Tax Freedom Act of 1998, which placed a moratorium on Internet access taxes. That moratorium was most recently extended in 2007 and now runs through November 2014. A dozen years after the original tax moratorium, government entities are again looking at the Internet. The focus this time has shifted to privacy. And, of particular interest to service providers, cloud computing falls within the scope of the latest inquiry.
PEER 1 Launches Channel Partner Portal
Posted May 5th, 2010 by Matthew Weinberger
PEER 1 Hosting, the global web hosting company that competes in the channel with companies like The Planet and Rackspace, has announced the next phase of its attempt to reach out to MSPs: a portal designed to let their channel partners access sales and marketing collateral, new information and tools, and, most notably, deal registration. Here’s the scoop.
Rackspace and Spiceworks Partner for Cloud E-mail Management
Posted April 26th, 2010 by Matthew Weinberger
Spiceworks, the free systems management solution, today announces a partnership with Rackspace Hosting to enable users to manage their cloud e-mail servers from the same dashboard as their other IT assets. The idea, Spiceworks says, is to give SMBs and the MSPs that service them control over both cloud and on-premises assets without getting tangled up in multiple portals. Here’s the scoop.
Seven Managed Services Blog Entries We Didn’t Write: April 23
Posted April 25th, 2010 by Joe Panettieri
The Ingram Micro VTN event is over. Now, I’m heading off to the HP Americas Partner Conference and Cisco Partner Summit, as is my blogging partner in crime. Last week was pretty intense covering Ingram as well as Autotask Community Live in Florida. Here are seven managed services blog entries the MSPmentor team didn’t have a chance to write for the week ending April 23, 2010.
Ingram Micro Seismic: 1,600 MSPs Now Engaged
Posted April 21st, 2010 by Joe Panettieri
Ingram Micro Seismic, the distributor’s managed services brand, generated record revenue and profit results in Q1 2010, according to Services VP Justin Crotty (pictured). But Crotty isn’t resting on Seismic’s laurels. During a discussion at the Ingram Micro VTN conference today in Hollywood, Fla., Crotty offered additional Seismic insights plus a preview of Ingram’s cloud conference — where Microsoft, Salesforce.com and RackSpace are set to take the stage. Here are the details.
Pagos Announces Rackspace Partnership
Posted April 6th, 2010 by Matthew Weinberger
Software developer Pagos has announced a partnership with Rackspace Hosting to bring their software-as-a-service (SaaS) spreadsheet solutions to a broader market – and to ensure SAS70 compliance for their customers without costly infrastructure upgrades. Here’s the scoop.
Cloud Hosting: Hostway Attracts $110 Million in Funding
Posted March 29th, 2010 by Joe Panettieri
Hostway Corp., which specializes in web hosting and cloud hosting services, has attracted $110 million in financing to support a “continued growth plan.” The deal is the latest example of (A) a web hosting company attracting money and (B) a web hosting company trying to search engine optimize around the cloud hosting term. Here are some quick details for managed services providers.
The Planet: Value Hosting Leader?
Posted February 23rd, 2010 by Matthew Weinberger
The Planet is the largest privately-held dedicated web server company in North America. But bigger doesn’t always mean better. That’s why The Planet is positioning itself around “value.” I spoke to Doug Erwin, CEO of The Planet, about how they’re getting there and what MSPs stand to gain. Here are some perspectives.
MSP Acquisition: Cavalier Buys Disaster Recovery Specialist
Posted January 25th, 2010 by Joe Panettieri
The lines between managed service providers, telecom companies and hosting providers continue to blur. The latest example involves Cavalier — a telecommunications specialist — acquiring NET Telcos, which specializes in data centers, managed services and business continuity. Here are some quick details about the deal.
Mark Logic Brings XML to Amazon EC2
Posted January 20th, 2010 by Matthew Weinberger
Yet another software firm is stepping into Amazon’s cloud. The latest example: Mark Logic, best known as developers of information infrastructure technology, has announced its intentions to bring their XML server solution to the cloud, starting with MarkLogic Server for Amazon EC2. Here’s the scoop.
Worth Watching: RackSpace Puts Databases in the Cloud
Posted December 21st, 2009 by Matthew Weinberger
Most managed service providers (MSPs) know Rackspace as a potential hosting partner. But the Rackspace Cloud effort (formerly called Mosso) is worth watching, especially as MSPs evaluate their own SaaS and cloud strategies. The latest Rackspace move involves a partnership with FathomDB. And it could provide an alternative to Microsoft’s emerging Azure cloud. Here’s a look.
Rackspace Cloud Business: A Closer Look
Posted November 13th, 2009 by Joe Panettieri
Rackspace is seeing growth in its cloud computing business at the same time the company’s traditional managed hosting operation acquires more of an up-market tone. But exactly how much has RackSpace’s cloud grown? And where is it going next? Here’s a look at the company’s strategy.
The Planet: We’re In Growth Mode
Posted October 28th, 2009 by Matthew Weinberger
The third quarter of 2009 was kind to The Planet, the Texas-based web hosting provider. At least, that’s what their momentum statement, issued Oct. 28, indicates. The really big deal, though, is The Planet’s biggest customers are spending more money — which may well be a sign of a recovering economy.
MSPs Prepare for VMworld 2009
Posted August 13th, 2009 by Joe Panettieri
Managed services and virtualization. The two have been converging for several years. But even I’m surprised by all of the MSP-oriented activity that will likely occur at VMworld 2009 (Aug. 31-Sept. 3, San Francisco). Here are some initial thoughts.
Do Small Businesses Understand Cloud Computing?
Posted February 4th, 2009 by Joe Panettieri
Roughly two-thirds of small businesses have never heard of cloud hosting, according to a survey conducted by Rackspace. Frankly, I think the data is a bit misleading. And James Urquhart, market manager for Cisco’s Data Center 3.0 strategy, has a few opinions on the survey as well. Here are some perspectives.
Zenoss: Open Source Meets Managed Services (Again)
Posted December 15th, 2008 by Joe Panettieri
I’m hearing a familiar trend in the managed services market: MSPs seem to be embracing more and more open source tools. The latest example involves Zenoss, a commercial open source company that specializes in applications, systems and network monitoring.
Open Source and Managed Services: Coming Together?
Posted November 5th, 2008 by Joe Panettieri
Open source is starting to influence portions of the managed services market. But can MSPs really trust open source?
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